MULTISTEP PROCESS-CONTROL AND CHARACTERIZATION OF SCANNING PROBE LITHOGRAPHY

Citation
Ca. Peterson et al., MULTISTEP PROCESS-CONTROL AND CHARACTERIZATION OF SCANNING PROBE LITHOGRAPHY, Applied physics A: Materials science & processing, 66, 1998, pp. 729-733
Citations number
11
Categorie Soggetti
Physics, Applied
ISSN journal
09478396
Volume
66
Year of publication
1998
Part
2
Supplement
S
Pages
729 - 733
Database
ISI
SICI code
0947-8396(1998)66:<729:MPACOS>2.0.ZU;2-J
Abstract
An atomic force microscope with a conducting tip (CT-AFM) was used to fabricate and characterize nanometer scale Lines of (1) silicon oxide and (2) silicon nitride on II-terminated n-type silicon (100) wafers. In process (1), a negative bias was applied to the tip of the CT-AFM s ystem and the resulting electric held caused electrolysis of ambient w ater vapor and local oxidation of the silicon surface. In addition, th e accompanying current was detected by a sub-pA current amplifier. In process (2), the presence of a nitrogen atmosphere containing a small partial pressure of ammonia resulted in the local nitridation of the s urface. The CT-AFM system was also used to locate and study the dielec tric properties of the silicon-oxide lines as well as copper islands b uried under 20 nm of silicon dioxide. A computer-controlled feedback s ystem and raster scanning of the sample produced simultaneous topograp hic and Fowler-Nordheim tunneling maps of the structures under study. Detailed aspects of nanolithography and local-probe Fowler-Nordheim ch aracterization using a CT-AFM will be discussed.